N.J. Readers Weigh In: Are Pit Bulls Dangerous?

Pit bulls don’t make good pets.

At least that’s what some Patch readers say.

Following a story about an alleged pit bull attack at South Mountain Reservation on Nov. 9, several readers reached out to us to express their concern about the inherent risks of the dog breed.

• See related article: Off-Leash Dog Attacks Man In South Mountain Reservation: Police

“Already in 2015, 23 people have been killed by pit bulls and pit bull mixes,” asserted Solange McInnis, a member of Daxton’s Friends, an advocacy group for public safety and animal welfare formed in honor of Daxton Borchardt, who passed away in 2013 due to severe injuries sustained in a dog attack.

“What we’ve discovered keeping track of the many daily incidents is that for every 110 dog attacks on humans resulting in hospitalization, 100 are perpetrated by pit bulls,” McInnis told Patch. “The other 10 are perpetrated by all other dog breeds combined. The victims of pit bull attacks are mostly young children under the age of seven and the elderly. In addition to the disfiguring or deadly attacks on humans, pit bulls kill many more animals.”

McInnis said that pit bull attacks are rapidly reaching an epidemic level across the United States.

“Of course, not all pit bulls maim and kill,” McInnis said. “But if you spend time reading attack reports, you’ll learn that ‘sweet, loving’ pit bulls can snap at any age, beginning at eight months and even at 12 years of age. Living next-door to a pit bull is a nightmare and the dogs often terrorize neighborhoods. People become prisoners in their own homes, afraid to go outside. Most attacks take place within a block of a pit bull residence, many next door to or within the residence.”

Other Patch readers also expressed their concern about the dog breed’s danger to humans.

“Pit bulls maul, maim and kill more than all the other 400-plus breeds combined... it isn’t rocket science people,” charged one reader.

“They are certainly dangerous dogs,” wrote another. “This is why most of the rescue dogs are currently pit bulls. No one wants to adopt them, and with good reason.”

Other readers expressed skepticism about the American Temperament Test Society’s claim that “pit bulls had a passing rate of 82 percent or better on their assessments, compared to only 77 percent of the general dog population.”

IN SUPPORT OF PIT BULLS

“There is no room for human aggression in a behaviorally sound pit bull, and the reality is that most pit bulls are not aggressive toward people; many are extremely sociable and adore children,” PetFinder.com states.

“Pit bulls have physical and mental characteristics that make them excellent partners for responsible, active and caring owners,” according to Pit Bull Rescue Central. “These same outstanding qualities can, however, be challenging for people who don’t have a lot of experience with dog ownership or have limited understanding of the breed.”

The American Veterinary Medical Association warns about using canine attack statistics to make conclusions about a particular breed:

“Dog bite statistics are not really statistics, and they do not give an accurate picture of dogs that bite. Invariably the numbers will show that dogs from popular large breeds are a problem. This should be expected, because big dogs can physically do more damage if they do bite, and any popular breed has more individuals that could bite.”

What do you think? Are pit bulls more dangerous than other dog breeds? Take the Patch reader poll below and share why you voted that way in the comments section.